Whenever Sound Devices releases a new piece of equipment, most pros stand up and take notice. Known for its flexibility, sound quality, and rugged field-readiness, Sound Devices’ gear has found a home in the rigs of many pros and amateurs alike. With the announcement of the 688 12-input field production mixer and 16-track recorder, the company builds upon the popularity and quality of its 664 mixer and recorder, doubling the input count, and now accommodating resolutions up to 192 kHz/24-bit. The 688 also features the company’s MixAssist software, which employs a proprietary algorithm that automatically mixes your inputs while maintaining consistent background sound levels. The system tracks to SD and CompactFlash cards for a variety of recording options, including redundancy and simultaneous WAV/MP3 recording.

Azden is showcasing some new wares at this year’s NAB convention, aimed directly at on-site recording. The SGM-250 shotgun mic employs a metal-alloy body with a newly designed microphone element aimed at doing what you want a good shotgun mic to do: provide a wide frequency response with low noise and high SPL handling, all while rejecting side image, all while operating on either phantom power or a single battery. The company has also unveiled an update to its popular FMX-42 with the FMX-42u, which now features analog-to-digital conversion for providing backups.

Known for its innovative effects, audio-correction software, and mastering/mixing tools, iZotope has used NAB 2015 to unveil its next step, farther into the world of post-production and broadcast. RX Loudness Control looks to combine global loudness standards with the ease of use for which iZotope has become known. Working in faster-than-real-time, the software renders your audio to your selected loudness standard, and creates a history graph and loudness report that shows you where any overflows may be occurring. If an overage does occur, the software includes iZotope’s IRC II transparent limiting. Catering to multiple channels counts, it supports mono, stereo, and surround channel counts up to 5.1. Please check back for pricing and availability.

Rob Rives, of B&H, chats with Jeff Laity, of Tascam, about the company’s newly announced budget-minded TM-80 Studio Condenser Microphone, which is designed to be a workhorse for vocals, instruments, strings, and podcasters without breaking the bank. Also, Tascam is showing off the latest addition to its stalwart Portastudio line, giving you the ability to track directly to an SD card in 24-bit quality, in addition to a number of other upgrades.

DPA microphones are known for their reference-quality clarity, providing accurate sonic reproduction. At this year’s NAB, the company has announced an addition to its d:facto line, in the form of an interview microphone. Like your typical handheld interview mic, it boasts an omnidirectional polar pattern, giving you freedom of movement while interviewing. DPA has employed a number of wind and handling-noise suppression techniques to help the mic be as quiet as possible in the field. Please check back for pricing and availability.

In broadcasting, it seems there is always a debate as to what kind of microphone is best to use—dynamic or condenser. Both have a list of pros and cons for any given broadcast application, and with the newly announced BP40 Large Diaphragm Dynamic Broadcast Microphone, it appears Audio-Technica is looking to combine the best of both worlds into a dynamic package. The mic sports a large (for a dynamic mic) 37.5mm diaphragm that provides some condenser-like articulation without betraying the low-end oomph of a dynamic. If you do need to tame that low end because of a rumbling room or extra-boomy voice, the mic does have a selectable high-pass filter. Also featured in the video is a look at the new AT2020USBi, a refresh to their popular USB mic that sees no changes to the capsule or sound capture quality, but an increase of its maximum sampling rate to 24-bit/96 kHz and the inclusion of both USB and Lightning connectors for hooking directly up to your iOS devices. Please check back for pricing and availability.

Go tiny or go home: that’s the battle cry for Lectrosonics at NAB 2015, which is introducing a brand new transmitter that fits into the palm of your hand. Concealable so that the talent doesn’t notice it, the smaller, lighter transmitter also features a removable, rechargeable lithium battery. Check out the full video here. Please check back for pricing and availability

In this video, our in-house audio expert, Rob Rives, demonstrates two condenser shotgun microphones from RØDE: the NTG4 and NTG4+. Featuring a supercardioid polar pattern and the ability to withstand up to 135 dB SPL, these mics offer an ideal solution for ENG, filmmaking, field recording, sound design, and broadcast applications. We hope you enjoy the video, and invite you to view the wide selection of other instructional and informative videos at BandH.com.

In this video, Rob Rives shows us three new pocket synthesizers from Teenage Engineering and Cheap Monday: the PO-12 Rhythm for drums, the PO-14 Sub for bass, and the PO-16 Factory for lead sounds. Affordable, yet designed to pack a powerful punch, these three pocket synths can be synched together and used in concert. They all have built-in sequencers, built-in effects, and feature a unique animated LCD screen. We hope you enjoy the video, and invite you to view the wide selection of other instructional and informative videos at BandH.com.